When It Comes to Where to Retire, Climate and Weather Are Top Reasons

I lived in Boca Raton in Florida for several years. The heat and humidity coupled with the insane winter traffic drove me out! Boca is perhaps the best town in South Florida but all of Florida is way to hot for me!
Cost of Living is high and the insurance premiums if you live near the coast (the only civilized place to live) are 300 to 400 dollars a month.
Just as many people abandon Florida as those that retire there thinking is will be a Nirvana! Especially those coming from the North.

I live in Florida, but on the SW coast as opposed to the SE coast. I do not pay anywhere near $300-400/month for insurance. I came from the north (Minnesota). Yes, it's hot here in the summer. Actually, it's been hotter in Minnesota this summer. Go figure.

Naples, Florida has been consistently cooler than Washington, DC this past month. My Aunts and I laugh about this,
however they do have tons of traffic and hate it when the snowbirds come down for the winter. They have to plan weeks in advance to go to a nice restaurant and plan shopping trips around traffic just as I do in Washington, DC. I want a more walkable, college city and less traffic. I am looking elsewhere for retirement and will leave the highly popular places for others. I hope to find a somewhat alluring place so I will get visitors too.

Ron, Florida is not for everyone, I’ve found that people either hate or love Florida. We love the summers and winters weather. We moved to Delray Beach from DFW area in Texas and we love the area. We have lived in Conn and both coasts of Florida. Since moving to Florida all our expenses have decreased. These include property tax, property insurance, car insurance, utilities. You say traffic is bad, try driving in DALLAS traffic.

Living in Florida is waking up each and every day in paradise and a endless summer and vacation. What it boils down to is “to each their own”

Love Florida and and loving life!

I agree weather is a deciding factor or at least one of the top consideration. For us l living where literally everything is in walking distance in a village is paramount. There are a couple months that aren’t wonderful so for us we just go away during that time to another small southern town, not in the typical Florida destinations. We did some serious homework and realized right where we are is the answer. We lived in Florida. You either want summer all year or you don’t. For me it became boring. As someone else said to each his/her own. What a luxury to be able to pick!!!

Almost simultaneous with the Top Retirements article, Bankrate.com issued its Best to Worst States to Retire rankings of all 50 states. The rankings within the Weather category, one of seven it assessed, is mystifying. Okay, not much to argue about #1 (Hawaii) and #2 (Florida), although Florida in the summer knocks its ranking down a bit for me. But Louisiana at #3? Seriously? There is no refuge from the heat and humidity of the summer months in Louisiana. I'll give Texas a reluctant pass at #4, but Mississippi at #5 is the same situation as Louisiana, a good place to stay indoors for a few months. In terms of best rankings across all categories, the top four in the Bankrate list -- South Dakota, Utah, Idaho and New Hampshire -- aren't even on the Top 10 list of best states at Top Retirements. Florida is #5 and North Carolina #6 (tied with Montana) but Georgia (37th) and South Carolina (41st) are way down the list. The big flaw in the Bankrate rankings is that it doesn't weight the weather category properly; as the driving force for most migration from the North, as indicated in the Top Retirement survey, it should be more than just another category.

I got a kick out of the 1% who said they are never planning on retiring. What read a blog about retiring? Lol!
SE vs SW. In retirement have done both. The SE is hot and humid while the SW is hot and dry. I'll take dry!
Hope those 700 some people are a good sampling, because they want a suburban setting in Florida instead of a small town in AZ. Now if I could get the tourist to go there instead of AZ it would be great! Lol!. :o

I am thinking about retiring in Punta Gorda Florida. I wonder if climate change will cause problems with flooding from sea level rise in the next 20 years to a point real estate pricing/demand will drop? Any thoughts?

The ancient Greeks were on to something: "Nothing in excess." That's just as true today. And just as a winter in, say, Fargo or Minot or Duluth or Grand Rapids would be considered excessive by most people, so too would a summer along the Gulf Coast.

I am not surprised to learn that many in the survey prioritized weather, or rather, climate, on their list of factors they're considering. I did, too; a "good" climate is one of the most important factors for me, along with a low cost of living. What is more curious is the fixation on places known for being susceptible to hurricanes and routinely hot, muggy summers that begin around Easter, and end around Halloween. Clearly, many of the people seeking such a climate are unfamiliar with it, and are trying to escape long, snowy winters, and erroneously think that if a little warmth is better, a lot of warmth is best. Be careful what you wish for.

I live in Houston, Texas, and I can absolutely, and with complete confidence, say that a Gulf Coast climate is not a moderate climate for several months of the year. No one would call a Houston July or August moderate, and June and September are not much better. Even May and October can be a challenge. Anyone who wants and expects to be active into retirement will not find such a climate conducive to an active lifestyle for many hours of the day, and for many months of the year. Even young, physically active people avoid the outdoors in Houston for many hours a day between June and September. It's true what they say - it's not the heat, it's the humidity. Or rather, the combination of heat and humidity. There simply are not many people who would find temperatures near or above 90 degrees comfortable when the humidity is around 65% or above.

My friendly suggestion is that people who aren't already doing so consult climate websites, or websites that look at a variety of factors, including climate, in different locales. Many of us use city-data.com regularly. It's got data on every issue one is likely to be interested in, including climate. Cross-check with cities you're familiar with. Because a winter in Florida or Texas is more pleasant than, say, a winter in Buffalo, doesn't mean that a summer will be likewise.

While I have lived in Houston for decades, I spent four years in Sacramento, CA, and loved my summers there, compared with my summers in Houston. The daytime temperatures were often as high in Sacramento as in Houston, but the lack of humidity made those high temperatures much more tolerable. And the nighttime lows in Sacramento dip into the low 60s, allowing one to keep the AC off, and crack the window open, and be perfectly comfortable. So, when looking at possible retirement places to explore, I used Houston and Sacramento as baselines. Any city with summers that approached those in Houston was quickly checked off the list; any city that was similar to or better than Sacramento remained on the list.

What makes for a desirable climate is subject to personal preference. For me, a mild-to-moderate four-season climate is preferable to a combination of high heat and humidity for much of the year, not to mention the threat of hurricanes that are guaranteed to continue threatening the Gulf Coast region. People can retire anywhere they want, and we all have our own preferences, but please do yourself a favor and make sure you know what you're signing up for.

Sorry folks, but you couldn't pay me to retire to FL or AZ. Even though we are all somewhat advanced in our years, we will be experiencing the effects of climate change now and more so in the immediate future. I think it would be wise to think twice about living in low-lying coastal areas or along major drainages where flooding will intensify. Same with desert states where temperatures will make places like western AZ uninhabitable during summer. The SW states already have drought/water issues that will increase. Homeowner insurance rates, electrical bills for cooling, and water rates will affect the cost of living. Look for higher ground & moderate climate instead.

Ron and Skip P, we will be moving permanently to our 55+ Delray Beach condo from Connecticut next year. For those who don’t know, Delray is the town immediately north of Boca Raton (about halfway between Ft. Lauderdale and West Palm Beach. We will be in west Delray, about 15-20 minutes to the beach. It is very “civilized” there and in west Boca as well. Our building insurance is included in our HOA fee ($390/mo including much more than insurance) and we pay about $700/year for personal property & liability insurance. The property taxes on our 2BR/2BA condo of about 1000 square feet are around $500 per year, with homestead exemption. The traffic is heavy on I-95 during the rush hours, but usually tolerable otherwise; Florida’s Turnpike, which runs parallel to I-95 in south Florida, is a usually less crowded alternative to 95, but is a toll road (fairly reasonable with a SunPass). It’s a matter of planning the timing of your trips. Of course, the winter season brings more cars, but, heck, we’re retired and don’t mind a somewhat slower pace of traffic then.

From November through March/April, the weather is mostly superb. The rest of the year the highs are in the upper 80’s to mid 90’s and it is as humid as the rest of the lower southeastern states. But if you’re within 10-15 miles of the Atlantic Ocean, there’s almost always a decent breeze. No question it is hot, but not as hot in the summer as my native Kansas. And, of course, air conditioning is ubiquitous. We have lived in central Florida (Orlando/The Villages) and found it hotter and not as breezy, due to that area’s distance from the coasts.

Hurricanes are always a consideration if you live in the southeast (yes, that definitely includes No. Carolina, So. Carolina, Virginia and Georgia, too). That’s one reason we bought a condo in a sizable community. We don’t have to personally deal much with any building damage that might occur; we also installed hurricane impact glass or shutters on all windows and doors (cost was $5,000 - $6,000, mostly for the impact windows, which are rated for winds between 170-200 mph). If it’s predicted to be a category 3+ hurricane, we’re leaving about three days early, before the traffic jams, to drive about a day to relatives in a much safer geographical area. Political atmosphere is also important to us and the greater Miami area (Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach Counties) is generally moderate to liberal, but there are plenty of conservatives around. So these are some of the reasons we chose south Palm Beach County, Florida. We’re looking forward to the permanent move. Being snowbirds doesn’t work for us.

Why do you folks not have a "Print" function for your articles?

Editor Comment: Good suggestion. We will work on it. In the meantime, highlight the text, copy, and paste into a text document. Then print.

I have specific weather related criteria I would like to evaluate as part of our decision making process on where to move. Problem is, I do not know where to get the information.

I am interested in communities that historically have:
Maximum high temperature 80 degrees
Minimum low temperature 40 degrees
No hurricanes
No tornadoes
Low fire risk

Weather is only one of the criteria I would like to evaluate. Also important are:
low crime, good walkability, very good medical resources, low taxes and political representation.

Are there any websites that would allow me to enter my criteria?

Before I moved to Tucson, I spent time here in both December and June , the coldest and hottest months. I still find the winters to be a bit too cold and the snowbirds annoying, but I loved June and it is still my favorite month here. Been here 16 months now and it is the perfect place for me.

Jim,
If I were you, I’d check out the Olympic Peninsula in the state of Washington. Specifically, Port Angeles, Sequim, or Port Townsend would be some popular towns there. That area is in the rain shadow of the Olympic Mountains and would have the criteria you listed. The downside of the area is that it is somewhat isolated, however, ferry service is readily available to other areas of Puget Sound. I had an uncle who lived there and absolutely wouldn’t have lived anywhere else.

For demographics and other pertinent information about any city - we have used this website:

www.city-data.com

Has everything you might want to know!!

Dave had some interesting additions to the survey, which we will list here. We will also keep them in mind for our next survey. Please feel free to comment!
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Are you considering retiring in two places? If, so – please indicate your pairings. (we have previously published articles on this)

· Many of the Master Planned Communities targeted for retirees are Golf centric. As you research your next possible location, are you interested in avoiding Golf?

(You’ll see my note from the survey response. I believe as boomers age their emerging health issues will have a negative impact on their abilities to play. As memberships dwindle, I’m concerned that costs in these communities will be passed on to non-golfers in the form of increased HOA fees. I’m not convinced that there are enough of the upcoming generation to fill the void – in number or financially. This could end up being a burdensome cost Albatross around the necks of retirees. I can’t remember where I saw this but one of your commenters said something like….’finally, the developers are beginning to realize not everyone is ready for the Golf cart’…
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Editor's Note: Thanks Dave! We did get several comments about golf course living and moved them to a new post of an old article on that topic. See The Good, Bad, and Ugly about Golf Course Living . We look forward to your comments there!

A survey of the experiences of already retired people who relocated would be helpful. Questions about how soon after retiring did they relocate. Where their expectations met? Did the stay in the first place the relocated to of move again? If so, where.

Jean :)

This is an interesting comparison of costs for retiring in 3 Florida cities.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/retirement/florida-is-one-of-the-best-places-to-retire-in-america-—-heres-how-much-a-dream-retirement-costs/ss-AAAamcD

I am in my late 50s, and my husband is in his mid 60s. We are also ready to retire and leave Dallas, especially now with temperatures well over 100 this week. We have the same criteria list Jim has: Maximum high temperature 80 degrees,
Minimum low temperature 40 degrees, No hurricanes, No tornadoes, Low fire risk, etc., And we have added one item... my husband would love to retire on the lake. Does anyone out there have a recommendation? Thank you, Lori

Lori, Maybe San Diego would be close to your max and min temps, but being "snow birds" might do too! Summer in the mountains somewhere and winter in the south.

Hi Lori:
I did a quick check and as far as temperatures and Portland, Oregon is close, but not perfect for what you are looking for. The area does have lakes and the weather is very moderate. They do get rain and cloudy days and there is a slight threat of an earthquake now and then. Idaho would be another consideration as there are some lovely lakes there and few earthquakes. That is as close as I could come. You did not give any other considerations such as taxes and cost of living, but both are reasonable in these two states. As far as Idaho, stay to the south and west. The days are sunny and warmer. I hope you find your perfect spot. Portland has very little snow in the winter and they just had a few 100 degree days (global warming) but almost no one uses air conditioning there. My brother has a large log home on 15 acres and the logs insulate from the high heat and he uses ceiling fans throughout his home. I do not know as much about Idaho, it is lovely there however and the weather varies from north to south.

We are both retired. Due to commitments to our three granddaughters to see them through high school graduation, we have just now been able to put our retirement relocation into play. We are life-time Californians, but due to the mess the state government has created for its people we can't wait to get out of the state. Our plan is to set up our home base in Washington State primarily for (1) availability to our choice of health insurance, (2) the temperate summer weather as well as (3) the lack of personal state income tax, The idea is for us to be there six or seven months (spring and summer), and either purchase a small place (like a park model) or live in our motor home in an RV park in Arizona for the colder winter months. We haven't found an area yet in Washington that we are interested in (still searching), but have found quite a few inexpensive options in Arizona. When age and health decide for us that we need to settle in one place we will have used our "snowbird" time to research our final home.

The last few comments that discussed living on a golf course were moved to this interesting new Blog: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly About Golf Course Living

https://www.topretirements.com/blog/active-adult-communities/the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly-about-golf-course-living.html/#comment-309023